Sorry if this sounds odd, but the two above posts have finally made me understand that in America you must register your party before you can vote. And if you're a registered Democrat but you prefer the Republican in your constituency, you can't vote for them unless you re-register? Is this correct? Where I come from, your politics is pr…
Sorry if this sounds odd, but the two above posts have finally made me understand that in America you must register your party before you can vote. And if you're a registered Democrat but you prefer the Republican in your constituency, you can't vote for them unless you re-register? Is this correct? Where I come from, your politics is private and when you vote, nobody is supposed to know who you voted for. When you go to vote, the official finds your name and address on the list and marks it off, then gives you the ballot papers to fill in in a private booth, fold and place through a slot in a box beside the official desk where they can see you do it. And if your name hasn't been marked off, a few weeks later you get a Please Explain in the post, from the Electoral Commission.
Sorry if my post was misleading. In Michigan, you identify as one or the other ONLY for the primaries not the general elections. When we go into vote in the primaries we tell them which party's ballot we want. Then in the general election whoever won in their primary for both parties is on the ballot. That's why voting in both the primaries and general elections is so important.
Some use a "jungle primary," where every candidate regardless of party runs in a primary, and then in jungle primaries there are variations on whether the top two (California) or top four (Alaska) (or some other number) proceed to the general election, which can have even more variation including ranked choice (Alaska) or simple majority vote (California).
Correct, no two of the 50 are identical, although most have either an open or closed two-party primary and a general election that - in most cases - pits the two traditional parties against one another - at least for statewide and most congressional races.
Local elections are often - in theory - "non-partisan," but partisan differences cleave deep these days even in traditionally non-partisan elections for school boards, sewer districts and city councils.
Great explanations of most of this stuff at Ballotpedia.
Heavens yes. Those of us who studied American politics in political science classes appreciate all the moving parts and multiple dimensions and what James Madison called "faction," before that term came to have such a pejorative connotation.
Madison described "faction" in Federalist Paper #10, one in a series of late 1880s monographs to convince the colonies to adopt the Constitution after the failure of the Articles of Confederation.
Anne-Louise, It is my understanding you can only vote in a primary under a party designation. In the general election you can vote for yourself! Write-ins are allowed, as are any candidate you choose.
Anne-Louise, I know this can confusing, but I’ll take a try at explaining our party registration rules and at what point they may or may not apply.
First, we need to discern between types of elections - meaning Primary vs General. In the Primary Election, which always occurs before the General Election, the voters are deciding who the candidate will be that stands for for the political party in the General Election. In the 50 states/commonwealths (wish I could tell you the difference between these 2 entities, but alas, I cannot) that make up the United States many (not all) require that, in the Primary, ONLY political party members can vote. Moreover, many states ONLY (again, not all) allow voters to cast a ballot for those registered in the political party to which the voter belongs, i.e., Republicans for Republicans & Democrats for Democrats. Thus, the voter list carries party affiliation information so that the voter gets the correct ballot. And, just to confuse the issue, some states allow voters in primary elections to vote regardless of party affiliation.
However, once the candidates are selected in the Primary, a voter may vote in the General Election regardless of party affiliation. So no declaration of party membership by the voter, nor need to differentiate ballots handed to the voters. I hope this helps.
Yes, I start to see why things are in such a mess. This "system" is as inappropriate to the present day as is the wording of the Constitution. I'm very grateful to you and all the others of us who have taken the trouble to explain this to me. I think Karen Tumulty of WaPo must read LFAA, because she's got an opinion piece up today (which I've just read) headed "Who elects these clowns, exactly? As it turns out, almost none of us." Her article is embellished with a picture of Gaetz (he of the virile right eyebrow) and Boebert gazing adoringly at him. Ugh, what a way to start a day. Where's the coffee.
Sorry if this sounds odd, but the two above posts have finally made me understand that in America you must register your party before you can vote. And if you're a registered Democrat but you prefer the Republican in your constituency, you can't vote for them unless you re-register? Is this correct? Where I come from, your politics is private and when you vote, nobody is supposed to know who you voted for. When you go to vote, the official finds your name and address on the list and marks it off, then gives you the ballot papers to fill in in a private booth, fold and place through a slot in a box beside the official desk where they can see you do it. And if your name hasn't been marked off, a few weeks later you get a Please Explain in the post, from the Electoral Commission.
Sorry if my post was misleading. In Michigan, you identify as one or the other ONLY for the primaries not the general elections. When we go into vote in the primaries we tell them which party's ballot we want. Then in the general election whoever won in their primary for both parties is on the ballot. That's why voting in both the primaries and general elections is so important.
Thanks, Colette.
It's called the "closed primary system."
Not all states use it.
Some use a "jungle primary," where every candidate regardless of party runs in a primary, and then in jungle primaries there are variations on whether the top two (California) or top four (Alaska) (or some other number) proceed to the general election, which can have even more variation including ranked choice (Alaska) or simple majority vote (California).
More complicated than chess. "United States" is a romantic misnomer! :)
Because the constitution gives primary (not total) control of the process of elections. So there can be 50 variations.
Correct, no two of the 50 are identical, although most have either an open or closed two-party primary and a general election that - in most cases - pits the two traditional parties against one another - at least for statewide and most congressional races.
Local elections are often - in theory - "non-partisan," but partisan differences cleave deep these days even in traditionally non-partisan elections for school boards, sewer districts and city councils.
Great explanations of most of this stuff at Ballotpedia.
https://ballotpedia.org/Main_Page
Heavens yes. Those of us who studied American politics in political science classes appreciate all the moving parts and multiple dimensions and what James Madison called "faction," before that term came to have such a pejorative connotation.
Madison described "faction" in Federalist Paper #10, one in a series of late 1880s monographs to convince the colonies to adopt the Constitution after the failure of the Articles of Confederation.
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed10.asp
Exactly
Anne-Louise, It is my understanding you can only vote in a primary under a party designation. In the general election you can vote for yourself! Write-ins are allowed, as are any candidate you choose.
In my state, write-in votes only count if the candidate has declared him/herself as a write-in candidate .
We don't have that in Oregon. I usually received two write-in votes for Sheriff from a couple of friends of mine.
In Virginia you can vote in a Democratic primary even if you are a Republican, and vice versa.
often have to sign a loyalty oath
What? Loyalty oath to what? Where is this? In my state (Ohio) you simply ask for whichever primary ballot you want. There’s no oath of any kind.
However, our ruby-red Ohio legislature is currently trying to change that and require prior registration of party. Ugh!
Anne-Louise, I know this can confusing, but I’ll take a try at explaining our party registration rules and at what point they may or may not apply.
First, we need to discern between types of elections - meaning Primary vs General. In the Primary Election, which always occurs before the General Election, the voters are deciding who the candidate will be that stands for for the political party in the General Election. In the 50 states/commonwealths (wish I could tell you the difference between these 2 entities, but alas, I cannot) that make up the United States many (not all) require that, in the Primary, ONLY political party members can vote. Moreover, many states ONLY (again, not all) allow voters to cast a ballot for those registered in the political party to which the voter belongs, i.e., Republicans for Republicans & Democrats for Democrats. Thus, the voter list carries party affiliation information so that the voter gets the correct ballot. And, just to confuse the issue, some states allow voters in primary elections to vote regardless of party affiliation.
However, once the candidates are selected in the Primary, a voter may vote in the General Election regardless of party affiliation. So no declaration of party membership by the voter, nor need to differentiate ballots handed to the voters. I hope this helps.
Yes, I start to see why things are in such a mess. This "system" is as inappropriate to the present day as is the wording of the Constitution. I'm very grateful to you and all the others of us who have taken the trouble to explain this to me. I think Karen Tumulty of WaPo must read LFAA, because she's got an opinion piece up today (which I've just read) headed "Who elects these clowns, exactly? As it turns out, almost none of us." Her article is embellished with a picture of Gaetz (he of the virile right eyebrow) and Boebert gazing adoringly at him. Ugh, what a way to start a day. Where's the coffee.
Not all states are the same. In MT you do not have to declare a party to vote in any election